During the 1970's, when gasoline became scarcer and people became more aware of physical fitness, there was a renewed interest in the use of bicycles. The increased use of bicycles has continued to today. This increase in bicycle traffic has created a renewed interest in and greater need for bicycle safety.
The primary hazard to bicyclists has been inattentive motor vehicle drivers. Since bicycles move much more slowly than motor vehicles and are relatively less common, bicycles are often unnoticed. Devices have been sought to make bicycles more conspicuous both at long distances and at close range. The particular problem has been that bicycles are often hidden behind parked cars or other low objects in places where motorists are not accustomed to looking for moving objects.
One device strongly endorsed at one time, but now relatively uncommon, was the bicycle safety flag. A popular type of bicycle safety flag is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,878,810 to Conrad. This type of bicycle safety flag is illustrated in FIG. 1. It consists of a long spring-mounted pole 10. A spring-mount 12 is bolted to the rear wheel axle 14 where it meets the bicycle frame 16. The pole then rises vertically 4 or 5 feet from the spring-mount. At the top of the pole is a small flag 18. Usually the flag is a triangular pennant, approximately 6 inches tall and 9 inches long, colored bright orange or yellow.
The pennant is supposed to make the bicycle more noticeable. The pennant is mounted above the head of the rider so that the pennant itself is visible at heights above the height of the bicycle and rider. It can be effective in making a low bicycle visible over obstructions, like parked cars, when the bicycle is viewed from the side. While the bicycle is in motion the pennant is blown backwards and aligns itself parallel to the direction of the wind. This makes the pennant visible when approached from the side. However, the thin pennant is largely invisible when approached from the front or rear.
The small pennants have an additional problem. In changing winds, they often become wrapped around the pole on which they are mounted. The bicycle rider must therefore stop periodically to unfurl the flag in order to maintain maximum visibility.
Because the conventional bicycle safety flag does not substantially enhance the visibility of the bicycle seen from the front and rear, front and rear visibility usually has been addressed with reflectors. Reflectors have been mounted both on the front and the back of bicycles in various locations, sizes and styles. However, reflectors mounted on bicycles are not visible at heights above the height of the bicycle and rider and are not effective at night when they reflect the light from oncoming motor vehicles.
FIG. 2 shows a sign seat-brace assembly as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,586,348 to Rich, Jr. This assembly has a flat circular sign means 20 mounted on a brace 22 extending upward from the bicycle rear wheel axle and supporting the rear of an elongated bicycle seat. Sign means 20 provides a warning signal that is visible to a certain degree. However, it is largely invisible when approached from the sides and its height is limited because it is not flexibly attached to the bicycle to bend under low overhangs.
Accordingly, a need exists for a bicycle safety flag that is highly visible from all directions and that could be highly visible during both day and night hours.